in 

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BECK 


[ntroducto]      :      Im-e 


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Columbia  <Bntoei#itj> 

tntijeCttponfrtfljtork 

College  of  $fjpsftriansi  ano  burgeons 
Htbrarp 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

Open  Knowledge  Commons 


http://www.archive.org/details/introductorylectOObeck 


E&VBMneaR 


AN 


INTRODUCTORY  LE  CTURE, 


DELIVERED  AT  THE 


COLLEGE   OF   PHYSICIANS   AND   SURGEONS 


OF  THB 


CITY  OF  NEW  YORK, 


NOVEMBER  6,  1829. 


BY  JOHN  B.  BECK,  M.  D. 

rHOFTSson  or  materia  mf.dica  and  medical  jumsmuDEnrcH 

IN    THE    1-NIVEnSITV    OF    THE    STATE   OF  NEW   YORK. 


NEW  YORK: 

UIARLES  3    FRANCIS,  252  BROADWAY. 


18:29. 


an 


INTRODUCTORY  LECTURE, 


DELIVERED   AT   THE 


COLLEGE  OF  PHYSICIANS  AND  SURGEONS 


OF  THE 


CITY  OF  NEW  YORK, 


NOVEMBER  6,  1829. 


BY  JOHN  B.  BECK,  M.  D. 

PnOFESSOB  OF  materia  medica  and  medical  jurisprudence 

IN    TIIF.    UNIVERSITY   OF    THE    STATE  OF  NEW  YORK. 


NEW  YORK : 

OHAELBfl  H.  FRANCIS,  399  BROADWAY. 


18^). 


#-  m 


Sleight  &  Robinson,  Printers, 
Corner  of  Exchange  Place  and  William  Street. 


iVOTICE. 


The  following  discourse  was  prepared  and  delivered  in 
the  discharge  of  an  ordinary  duty,  devolving  upon  the  dif- 
ferent Professors  of  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons, 
to  open  their  annual  courses  of  lectures  with  public  intro- 
ductories.  The  precise  object  which  the  author  had  in 
view  was  to  guard  the  minds  of  those  who  might  hear  him 
against  the  infection  of  a  species  of  radicalism,  unfortu- 
nately too  prevalent,  in  this  city  at  least,  the  design  of 
which  seems  to  be  to  sweep  away  every  existing  institution, 
whether  in  the  shape  of  a  medical  college,  or  of  a  law  to 
regulate  and  control  the  practice  of  the  profession.  By  the 
friends  of  the  institution  to  which  the  author  is  attached,  it 
has  been  decided  that  the  discourse  might  be  of  more  per- 
manent utility,  and  it  is  in  entire  submission  to  their  judg- 
ment that  he  has  consented  to  its  publication. 

New  York,  November,  1829. 


.Veto  York,  November  14,  1829. 
Sib, 

The  undersigned,  having-  been  appointed  a  committee  for  that  purpose, 
take  pleasure  in  communicating  to  you  the  wishes  of  the  board  of  trustees, 
contained  in  the  following  extract  from  their  minutes: 

"A  communication  having  been  received  from  the  students  of  the  college, 
unanimously  requesting  the  publication  of  the  introductory  lecture  of  Pro- 
fessor J.  B.  Beck,  delivered  on  the  6th  instant,  and  the  trustees  believing  that 
the  publication  of  said  lecture  would  promote  the  interests  of  medical  educa- 
tion— Therefore,  Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  the  board  be  appointed  to 
solicit  of  Professor  Beck  a  copy  of  that  lecture  for  the  press." 

We  add  our  solicitations,  individually,  for  your  compliance  with  the  request 
of  the  board  of  trustees,  and  are,  respectfully,  yours. 

NICOLL  H.  DERTNG,  )         Committee 

P.  U.  JOHNSTON,  (  op  the 

J.  KEARNY  RODGERS,  S  Board  op  Trustees 
Professor  J.  B.  Beck. 


New  York,  November  16,  1829. 
Gentlemen, 

The  request  to  furnish  for  publication  a  copy  of  the  lecture  recently  deli- 
vered, comes  before  me  in  such  a  shape  as  to  render  it,  almost  a  matter  of 
duty  on  my  part,  to  comply  with  it.  In  doing  so,  let  me  ask  you  to  assure  the 
board  of  trustees  that  I  am  most  deeply  sensible  of  this  very  flattering  testi- 
monial of  their  approbation. 

With  sentiments  of  the  highest  respect  for  the  board  of  trustees,  as  well  as 
yourselves  individually,  I  am  very  respectfully,  yours,  &c. 

JOHN  B.  BECK. 
To  Nicoll  H.  Dering,  M.  D.         }  Committee  of  the  Board  of 
Francis  U.  Johnston,  M.  D.  >  Trustees  of  the  College  of 
J.  Kearny  Rodgers,  M.  D.     3  Physicians  and  Surgeons. 


LECTURE. 


The  occasion  of  commencing  an  annual  course  of  medi- 
cal instruction  is  one  of  interest  and  importance.  It  is 
then  the  pupil  enters  upon  a  series  of  studies  which  is  to 
lay  the  basis  of  his  future  character,  and  according  as  he 
improves  or  neglects  the  advantages  which  he  enjoys, 
may  his  name,  in  after  time,  be  honoured  or  contemned. 
And  it  is  then  the  teacher  finds  himself  assuming  the 
high  and  impressive  responsibility  of  guiding  the  opinions 
and  directing  the  practice  of  those  who  hear  him,  in  rela- 
tion to  subjects  which  involve,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  lives 
and  comfort  of  a  large  portion  of  mankind.  In  this  coun- 
try, and  in  this  city  especially,  such  occasions  are  sur- 
rounded with  a  peculiar  interest.  A  little  more  than  half 
a  century  ago,  the  first  medical  school  was  established  in 
this  city.  It  was  then  only  the  second  one  in  our  country. 
And  now  there  is  scarcely  a  state  in  the  Union  which  does 
not  boast  of  one  or  more  colleges,  supplied  with  native  in- 
structors of  talents  and  learning,  annually  sending  forth  a 
body  of  well  educated  physicians  and  surgeons,  devoting 
their  powers  and  attainments  to  the  service  of  the  commu- 
nity.    To  analyze  the  causes  which  have  exerted  an  agency 


in  bringing  about  results  so  flattering  to  our  national  pride, 
would  be  a  task  at  once  pleasing  and  instructive.  Such, 
however,  is  not  my  purpose  at  the  present  time ;  and  I  shall 
content  myself  with  making  some  general  observations  on 
the  subject  of  education,  with  the  view  of  illustrating  more 
especially  the  admirable  system  which  has  been  adopted, 
and  at  present  exists,  in  the  state  of  New  York,  and  of 
which  this  college  forms  a  part. 

The  advantages  of  education  are  too  well  and  generally 
appreciated  to  need  any  demonstration.  To  nations  as  well 
as  individuals,  they  are  conceded  to  be  the  surest  basis  of 
enduring  greatness  and  permanent  glory.  Notwithstanding 
this,  it  is  a  fact  proved  by  all  experience,  that  these  advan- 
tages are  never  justly  appreciated  unless  they  have  been  ac- 
tually enjoyed.  The  savage  knows  nothing  of  them,  and 
does  not  feel  the  want  of  them.  He  accordingly  makes  no 
effort  for  their  attainment — and  history  establishes  the  fact, 
that  every  nation  which  has  burst  the  chains  of  ignorance, 
and  made  any  advance  in  the  career  of  knowledge  and  im- 
provement, has  done  so  through  the  agency  of  a  power  ex- 
trinsic to  itself.  As  far  as  our  knowledge  extends,  we  know 
of  no  nation  which  ever  yet  civilized  itself.  On  the  con- 
trary, this  result  has  always  been  brought  about  either  by 
forced  attempts  at  civilization,  or  by  accidental  commerce 
with  nations  more  enlightened.  In  these  ways,  letters  and 
the  arts  have  progressively  urged  their  course  from  nation  to 
nation,  and  from  clime  to  clime.  Cradled  in  Assyria,  they 
travelled  from  thence  to  Egypt.  From  Egypt  they  were 
carried  to  Greece.     Greece  gave  them  to  Rome,  and  from 


Rome  they  spread  over  the  whole  of  Europe.  If  this  be 
true  of  whole  nations,  it  is  no  less  so  of  portions  of  nations. 
Hence,  by  the  lower  and  uninformed  orders,  even  of  civi- 
lized communities,  no  attempts  are  ever  made  to  enlighten 
themselves  beyond  the  narrow  circle  which  has  been  marked 
out  by  those  who  have  preceded  them ;  and  any  great  im- 
provement which  may  be  made  in  their  intellectual  condi- 
tion, is  always  effected  by  the  instrumentality  of  those  who 
have  already  enjoyed,  and  are  therefore  capable  of  duly  es- 
timating, the  blessings  of  superior  knowledge.  As  we  ad- 
vance through  the  different  gradations  of  society,  the  influ- 
ence of  the  same  general  fact  will  be  observed — and  thus,  by 
the  operation  of  the  superior  grades  upon  those  below  them, 
it  comes  to  pass,  that  the  taste  for  knowledge  is  progressively 
created  and  diffused.  Of  the  trulh  of  this  position,  illus- 
trations are  profusely  scattered  around  us  in  the  multi- 
plied efforts  which  are  making  to  improve  the  intellectual 
condition  of  the  poorer  classes  of  society.  In  no  one  in- 
stance have  these  originated  in  any  endeavour  on  the  part 
of  the  poor  themselves,  to  be  supplied  with  the  means  of 
instruction.  On  the  contrary,  they  have  always  been  the 
result  of  the  benevolence  and  zeal  of  the  intelligent  and  in- 
structed portions  of  the  community. 

Now  the  known  existence  and  constant  operation  of  such 
a  law  as  the  one  I  have  been  alluding  to,  is  a  sort  of  secu- 
rity that  in  all  civilized  and  free  countries,  knowledge  of  a 
certain  kind,  and  to  a  certain  extent,  will  be  perpetuated. 
As  a  matter  of  course,  however,  it  can  never  go  beyond  that 
which   if  actually  enjoyed   and   appreciated  by  the  mass 

2 


10 

of  community.  It  is,  therefore,  limited  in  its  agency 
to  elementary  knowledge,  or  at  any  rate  to  such  kinds  of 
it  as  may  be  rendered  immediately  and  practically  use- 
ful. So  far  as  the  higher  departments  of  knowledge  are 
concerned,  this  law  must  accordingly  be  exceedingly  inope- 
rative. The  lower  orders,  as  a  matter  of  course,  have  no 
sort  of  idea  of  their  nature  and  importance.  The  upper 
spheres  of  knowledge  are  removed  at  too  great  a  distance 
to  be  clearly  seen  by  the  dim  vision  of  ignorance — and  even 
of  the  intelligent  and  ordinarily  well  educated  portion  of 
society,  very  few  indeed  are  capable  of  estimating  their  va- 
lue. Unless  science  and  learning  are  rendered  glaring  to 
the  senses,  as  it  were,  by  their  practical  utility,  they  are 
very  apt  to  be  scorned  even  by  men  in  other  respects  sen- 
sible and  intelligent.  Frequent  and  striking  illustrations  of 
this  are  met  with  in  the  contempt  which  is  so  often  expressed 
for  classical  learning — for  the  higher  branches  of  mathe- 
matical science — and  for  that  minute,  exact,  and  profound 
professional  knowledge,  which  it  is  the  peculiar  business  of 
such  an  institution  as  this  to  cultivate  and  to  teach. 

There  being,  therefore,  no  special  demand  for  the  higher 
and  more  refined  kinds  of  knowledge,  either  in  the  immedi- 
ate wants  or  general  taste  of  the  community  at  large,  and 
therefore  no  adequate  compensation  offered  for  their  cultiva- 
tion, it  has  been  necessary  to  supply  this  deficiency  by 
other  aids  and  helps ;  and  these  have  been  found  in  the 
bounty  and  patronage  of  enlightened  governments  and  indi- 
viduals, by  whom  universities,  and  colleges,  and  professorships 
have  been  established  and  endowed  in  such  way  as  to  ena- 


11 

ble,  a  few  at  least,  of  the  learned  men  of  a  country,  to  push 
their  researches  into  the  regions  of  science,  far  beyond,  what, 
under  other  circumstances,  they  would  be  enabled  to  do. 

Such  being  the  necessary  dependence  of  mankind  gene- 
rally, upon  external  aids,  for  advancement  in  knowledge,  the 
business  of  education,  especially  the  higher  departments  of 
it,  has  always  been  an  object  of  special  interest  with  every  go- 
vernment that  lias  felt  any  generous  concern  for  its  real  glory. 
It  is  to  this  is  owing  the  existence  of  those  noble  universities 
in  different  countries,  which  for  ages  have  shed  so  bright  and 
steady  a  light  over  the  paths  of  learning  ;  and  if  the  records 
of  science  be  consulted,  it  will  be  found  that  among  her 
greatest  benefactors  have  been  men  who  have  been  fostered 
by  these  institutions — men,  who,  placed  in  comparative  inde- 
pendence as  teachers  or  students,  have  been  enabled,  under 
the  influence  of  a  pure  ambition,  to  sound  the  depths  of 
knowledge,  and,  by  their  learned  labours,  not  merely  to  se- 
cure renown  to  themselves  and  to  their  country,  but  to  exalt 
the  character  of  the  race  itself. 

If  the  statement  which  has  been  made  be  founded  in 
truth,  it  would  seem  very  fairly  to  meet  an  opinion  which 
has  gained  some  currency,  and  which  in  this  country  ap- 
pears in  such  just  accordance  with  the  general  genius  of  our 
institutions,  as  to  meet  with  a  ready  acquiescence  in  the 
minds  of  a  very  larg;  and  influential  portion  of  society. 
The  opinion  to  which  I  allude,  is,  that  education,  as  well  of 
the  higher  order  as  elementary,  should  be  left  to  regulate 
it-i-lf,  Like  every  other  article  which  maybe  called  for  by 
the  taste  or  necessities  of  the  public,     If  such  were  the  case, 


12 

it  is  urged,  that  a  wider  field  of  competition  would  be  thrown 
open,  and  that  nothing;  in  the  shape  of  education  would  be 
offered  in  the  market,  which  did  not  suit  the  popular  taste. 
Systems  and  doctrines  accordingly  unaccommodated  to  the 
public  appetite,  or  opposed  to  the  prevailing  fashion  of  the 
day,  would  not  be  taught,  for  the  simple  reason  that  they  would 
not  be  paid  for  ;  and  thus  education  would  be  brought  home 
to  the  business  and  practical  wants  of  life. 

Such  is  the  argument  which  is  urged  by  many  against  all 
established  institutions,  and  it  is  the  same  argument,  which, 
under  a  different  guise,  is  so  diligently  protruded  in  favour 
of  so  multiplying  them,  as,  in  fact,  to  do  away  all  the  cha- 
racter which  they  possess  as  privileged  institutions.  It  was 
by  so  distinguished  a  man  as  Adam  Smith,  in  his  Wealth  of 
Nations,  that  this  doctrine  was  first  broached ;  and  it  is  to 
him,  as  their  leader,  that  all  the  chorus  singers  of  the  pre- 
sent day,  on  this  subject,  are  indebted  for  their  music. 

As  the  subject  is  important,  and  the  argument  offers  a 
great  show  of  plausibility,  I  shall  detain  you  with  a  few 
brief  remarks  upon  it. 

Specious  and  plausible  as  the  argument  confessedly  is,  it 
requires  but  little  penetration  to  perceive  that  it  is  princi- 
pally reared  upon  a  false  analogy.-  Learning  is  considered 
as  a  thing  perfectly  analogous  to  articles  of  ordinary  traffic. 
This  is  assumed  in  the  argument,  and  the  reasoning  appli- 
cable to  the  latter  is  unceremoniously  transferred  to  the 
former.  Nov/  this  is  a  great  error,  and  it  is  one  which  is 
fatal  to  the  whole  argument.  There  is  no  just  analogy  be- 
tween articles  of  trade  and  learning.     The  one  is  addressed 


13 

to  our  physical  wants,  while  the  other  has  reference  to  our 
intellectual  wants — two  classes  of  wants  differing  altogether 
from  one  another,  in  the  desire  which  men  experience  to 
have  them  supplied.  In  the  case  of  physical  wants,  instinct 
and  the  necessities  of  our  nature  compel  us  to  their  use. 
The  more,  for  instance,  the  physical  wants  of  hunger  and 
thirst  are  excited,  the  greater  will  be  the  desire  for  food  and 
drink.  In  the  case  of  intellectual  wants,  there  is  no  natural 
craving  for  supplying  them.  On  the  contrary,  the  greater 
the  want,  the  more  blunted  is  the  feeling  of  the  want  itself, 
and  the  feebler  is  the  desire  to  have  it  remedied.  For  in- 
stance, the  more  ignorant  we  are,  the  less  are  we  conscious 
Of  the  degradation  of  which  it  is  the  badge,  and  the  less  do 
we  desire  to  be  enlightened  and  instructed.  There  is,  then, 
an  essential  and  a  radical  dissimilarity  between  learning  and 
the  commodities  of  ordinary  traffic.  Any  argument,  there- 
fore, which  may  be  just  and  true  in  relation  to  the  latter,  is 
not  necessarily  so  in  relation  to  the  former. 

But  it  is  urged,  that  if  education  were  left  to  take  its  own 
course,  without  patronage — without  endowments — without 
privileges — in  short,  left  solely  to  individual  enterprise, 
unaided  and  unprotected  by  authority — the  character  of 
it  would  be  better  accommodated  to  the  prevailing  taste  of 
tin.-  age  and  community.  Now  all  this  may  be  granted  at 
once — indeed,  it  seems  to  be  a  necessary  result  of  such  a  sys- 
tem. But  it  remains  to  be  proved  that  all  this  would  be  ad- 
vantageous to  the  general  interests  of  learning,  or  of  the  com- 
munity. I  speak  not  now  of  common  elementary  educa- 
tion— what  I  have  to  say  has  reference  to  the  higher  de- 


14 

partments  of  learning ;  and  so  far  as  these  are  concerned,  if 
experience  and  history  can  serve  us  as  guides,  it  will  be 
found  proven  beyond  a  question,  that  a  few  well  endowed 
and  privileged  universities  and  colleges,  are  infinitely  better 
calculated  to  sustain  the  cause  and  extend  the  blessings  of 
science,  than  the  multitudinous  institutions  which  may  start 
into  hasty  existence  under  the  urgency  of  the  vanity  and  am- 
bition, or  even  worthier  motives  of  individual  projectors.  The 
reason  is  sufficiently  obvious.  Institutions  established  by 
the  proper  authorities  of  the  country  in  which  they  are  lo- 
cated, from  their  very  nature  are  enabled  at  once  to  com- 
mence, and  afterwards  to  enforce,  a  high  and  elevated  stan- 
dard of  education  which  would  be  perfect  ruin  to  those,  which 
are  dependent  solely  upon  the  whim  or  caprice  of  the  popu- 
lar voice.  And  this  it  is  not  less  their  duty  to  do  than  it  is 
their  interest.  The  permanent  renown  of  an  institution 
established  by  law,  depends  not  so  much  upon  her  crowded 
halls  or  upon  her  sounding  pretensions,  as  it  does  upon  the 
high  tone  of  literary  and  scientific  feeling  which  it  inspires 
in  the  minds  of  her  pupils — the  pure  ambition  which  it  en- 
courages— and  the  industrious  labour  which  it  inculcates. 
Of  such  a  system,  the  effects  are  perhaps  not  so  immediate 
and  apparent.  The  superficial  and  empty  is  always  more 
noisy  and  obtrusive  than  the  solid  and  the  profound.  The 
shallow  rivulet  urges  its  fretful  current  into  foam  and  noise, 
while  the  majestic  river  rolls  its  deep  and  swelling  tide  in 
solemn  stillness,  bearing  on  its  bosom  the  labours  of  indus- 
try and  the  riches  of  commerce.  It  is  with  learning  as  with 
every  thing  else.     It  is  an  ordinance  of  nature,  that  what- 


15 

ever  is  designed  to  be  strong  and  vigorous  shall  be  slow  in 
coming  to  its  maturity.     The  insect  is  mature  almost  at  the 
moment  of  its  birth — while  man,   designed  eventually  to 
control  all  creation,  struggles  through  a  helpless  infancy  and 
a  tedious  minority,  before  he  attains  the  physical  powers 
suited  to  his  illustrious  destiny.     And  so  with  learning.     To 
be  really  good,  it  must  be  the  result  of  laborious,  protracted, 
and  reiterated  efforts — and  this  is  the  true  reason  why  a  sound 
and  exalted  system  of  education  does  not  so  immediately  flash 
upon  the  public  eye.     In  the  end,  however,  its  results  are  as 
glorious  as  its  progress  has  been  slow.     It  is  only  under  such 
a  system  that  the  bone  and  muscle  of  science  can  be  pro- 
perly elaborated  ;  and  if,  in  the  course  of  a  whole  genera- 
tion, it  shall  give  to  the  world  only  one  man  of  surpassing 
power  like  Newton  cr  Bacon,  or,  in  our  own  profession,  like 
Haller,  or  Harvey,  or  Boerhaave,  or  Sydenham,  it  does  more 
for  the  real  advancement  of  knowledge,  than  could  be  ef- 
fected by  whole  legions  of  the  forced  productions  of  the 
literary  and  scientific  hot-houses  of  the  day. 

Notwithstanding  all  this,  it  is  very  evident  that  a  system 
which  exacts  so  much  labour,  and  is  of  such  slow  growth,  can 
never  be  so  immediately  popular ;  and  hence  it  is  utterly 
impossible  for  institutions,  depending  altogether  for  their  very 
existence  upon  the  breath  of  popular  favour,  to  adopt  such 
a  system.  On  the  contrary,  they  are  obliged  to  cut  down 
the  stern  requisitions  of  learning  to  suit  the  false  taste  and 
empirical  notions  of  their  patrons,  for  in  nothing  is  there  so 
much  empiricism  as  in  the  opinions  which  people  entertain 
on  the  subject  of  education.     And  hence  it  will  be  found 


16 

that  in  institutions  of  this  sort,  there  is  always  some  com- 
promise between  duty  and  interest.  This  is  the  premium 
which  they  must  pay  to  secure  popularity.  It  is  only  in  in- 
stitutions established  by  authority,  and  protected  by  law, 
that  a  high  system  of  education  can  be  enforced.  In  the 
sacred  retreats  of  such  institutions,  the  professor  feels  a 
proud  consciousness  that  he  can  .devote  himself  to  the  no- 
blest of  purposes,  without  being  obliged  to  barter  away  the 
rights  and  honours  of  science ;  while  the  student,  knowing 
that  all  his  privileges  are  secured  to  him  by  competent  au- 
thority, is  inspired  solely  with  the  love  of  science,  and  bends 
all  his  energies  to  the  acquisition  of  knowledge.  In  such 
an  institution,  he  feels  that  he  really  is  a  student,  and  no- 
thing else.  On  the  other  hand,  in  institutions  got  up  unaided 
by  public  law,  and  perhaps  in  direct  opposition  to  it,  it 
is  too  much  the  case  that  the  student  looks  upon  himself 
as  a  kind  of  citizen  soldier,  one  of  whose  principal  businesses 
is  to  stand  upon  guard  and  do  duty  in  defence  of  works  in- 
cessantly threatened  with  assault  and  destruction. 

But  it  is  urged  against  established  institutions,  that  they 
have  a  tendency  to  repress  competition.  As  this  is  a  very 
common  place  and  popular  argument  against  them,  and  in 
the  minds  of  not  a  few  appears  to  be  conclusive,  it  may  not  be 
inappropriate  briefly  to  consider  it.  The  objects  of  com- 
petition may  be  two-fold — either  to  improve  the  quality  of 
an  article,  or  to  cheapen  the  price.  These  are  its  objects  in 
matters  of  ordinary  traffic,  and  when  both  these  are  gained 
at  the  same  time  that  the  producer  of  the  article  makes  his 
fair  profit,  competition  becomes   of   the   greatest   benefit 


17 

to  the  community.  It  encourages  ingenuity  and  laudable 
enterprize.  Individuals  thrive  and  prosper,  and  the  public 
reap  substantial  advantage.  If,  however,  competition  be 
carried  so  far  as  to  compel  the  competitors  simply  to  cheapen 
the  article,  without  any  regard  to  the  quality,  it  is  very  evi- 
dent that  the  public,  instead  of  being  the  gainer,  may  actu- 
ally be  the  loser.  And  if  it  be  carried  still  further,  so  as  to 
involve  in  ruin  those  engaged,  the  effect  is  still  more  inju- 
rious, not  only  to  the  individuals  themselves,  but  to  the  com- 
munity at  large.  The  truth  is,  there  are,  and  necessarily  must 
be,  certain  limits,  beyond  which  competition  cannot  be  pushed 
without  producing  mischief. 

Certi  sunt  denique  fines 
Q,  10s  ultra  necuit  consistere  rectum. 

The  mass  of  mankind,  however,  are  too  apt,  unfortunate- 
ly, to  consider  that  the  great  design  of  competition  is  gained 
when  the  article,  whatever  it  may  be,  is  nominally  cheapened  ; 
and  hence  it  is,  that  this  is  the  mark  aimed  at  whenever 
competition  becomes  excessive.  Now  this  is  no  less  true 
of  competition  in  education,  than  it  is  in  matters  of  ordinary 
trade.  And  whenever  it  is  carried  beyond  a  certain  point, 
the  necessary  result  is  that  the  quality  of  the  article  is  im- 
paired. Education  is  made  a  matter  of  traffic,  and  its  tex- 
ture and  quality  suited  accordingly  for  the  market.  Then 
comes  the  season  of  speculators  and  jobbers.  Colleges  are 
got  up  by  stock  companies,  and  annual  dividends  de- 
clared upon  the  number  of  graduates.  Against  all  such 
competition,  it  must  be  confessed,  that  institutions  established 

3 


18 

and  protected  by  the  authority  of  the  land  are  decidedly 
hostile.  But  so  far  from  this  being  an  argument  against 
them,  it  is  one  of  the  most  triumphant  which  can  be  brought 
in  their  favour.  During  the  foods  and  whirlwinds  of  such 
unholy  competition,  a  few  institutions  of  this  kind  may 
save  the  general  bankruptcy  of  learning  in  a  country. 

If,  however,  the  legitimate  object  of  competition  in  edu- 
cation be  not  to  cheapen  the  article,  but  to  improve  it — to 
elevate  its  character — to  establish  and  sustain  a  high  stan- 
dard— then  institutions  such  as  these,  instead  of  repressing, 
are  the  very  means  of  encouraging  emulation,  and  rousing 
competition.  In  fact,  they  are  the  only  ones  which  can  do 
it.  They  alone  can  create  the  highest  standards — can 
hold  out  the  strongest  inducements  to  exertion,  by  the  dis- 
tinctions which  they  confer,  and  by  the  high  offices  of  ho- 
nour and  emolument  in  their  gift.  In  all  these  ways,  they 
excite  a  generous  emulation,  and  what,  perhaps,  is  of  still 
more  importance,  reward  it  when  successful.  All  history 
proves  the  correctness  of  this  statement.  In  looking  over 
the  literary  geography  of  the  world,  it  is  truly  gratifying  to 
find,  in  all  the  countries  in  which  such  institutions  have  been 
located,  how  they  have  been  the  fortresses  of  knowledge, 
and  the  sanctuaries  of  the  learned;  and  how,  amid  the 
anarchy  of  the  times,  they  have  sustained  the  honours  of 
science  against  the  rude  shocks  of  ignorance,  and  the  never 
ending  revolutions  of  popular  opinion. 

But  it  is  time  to  bring  these  general  considerations  to  a 
close ;  and  I  have  made  them  in  a  brief,  and,  I  fear,  some- 
what imperfect  manner,  as  preliminary  to  a  very  rapid  no- 


19 

tice  of  the  system  which  has  been  adopted  in  this  state,  more 
especially  that  department  of  it  which  relates  to  our  profes- 
sion. And  I  have  designed  to  show  that  so  far  as  the  higher 
departments  of  learning,  at  least,  are  concerned,  the  only 
method  of  ensuring  their  proper  cultivation  is  by  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  few  institutions  under  the  immediate  patronage 
and  superintendence  of  ths  government. 

From  the  earliest  periods  of  our  independent  existence, 
the  people  of  this  state  seem  to  have  been  fully  convinced  of 
the  erroneous  nature  of  the  doctrine  that  education  should  be 
left  to  itself.  This  conviction  had  been  wrought  upon  them 
no  less  by  speculative  reasoning  on  the  subject  than  by 
having  witnessed  the  practical  effects  of  such  a  system  ante- 
rior to  our  revolution.  During  the  whole  of  our  colonial 
existence,  very  little  attention  had  been  paid  to  the  subject 
of  education  ;  indeed,  it  was  not  until  about  the  middle  of 
the  last  century  that  any  thing  of  importance  was  done  in 
the  colony  in  the  way  of  public  provision  for  the  instruction 
of  youth,  and  the  private  schools  were  but  poorly  qualified 
to  make  amends  for  the  negligence  of  the  government. 
Smith,  in  his  history  of  New  York,  mentions  that  towards 
the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  under  the  reign  of 
James,  a  Latin  school  was  set  up  ;  the  teacher,  however,  was 
strongly  suspected  of  being  a  Jesuit.  The  general  disaf- 
fection to  the  government  of  this  Prince,  and  the  increasing 
jealousy  of  Catholic  influence,  probably  prevented  it  from 
being  much  encouraged.*     Its  fate,  however,  is  not  men- 

•  History  of  New  York,  by  William  Smith,  A,  M.,  page  102. 


20 

tloned.  Under  the  administration  of  Governor  Cosby,  the 
subject  of  education  was  recommended  by  the  governor  to 
the  consideration  of  the  assembly;  and  in  the  year  1732,  a 
bill  was  passed  for  encouraging  a  public  school  to  teach 
Latin,  Greek,  arithmetic,  aud  mathematics,*  and  certain  mo- 
nies a  jprrprijated  for  its  sup^oit.  The  children  were  to  be 
taught  gratuitously.  Whether  this  school  ever  went  further 
than  the  paper  bill  which  gave  it  birth,  does  not  appear.  At 
any  rate,  it  can  have  gained  no  character,  for  at  the  time 
Smith  wrote  his  history  of  the  colony,  he  says :  "  Our 
schools  are  in  the  lowest  order ;  the  instructors  want  instruc- 
tion, and  through  a  long,  shameful  neglect  of  all  the  arts 
and  sciences,  our  common  speech  is  entirely  corrupt ;  and 
the  evidences  of  a  bad  taste,  both  as  to  thought  and  lan- 
guage, are  visible  in  all  our  proceedings,  public  and  pri- 
vate." t 

The  only  effort  to  advance  the  cause  of  learning  which 
was  made  in  the  Colony,  was  in  the  establishment  of  Kings 
College,  now  called  Columbia  College,  a  few  years  previous 
to  the  revolutionary  war. 

It  thus  appears  that  with  the  exception  of  the  formation 
of  this  college,  nothing  was  done  by  the  government  either 
local  or  foreign  for  supplying  the  means  of  instruction  ;  and 
this  was  the  true  cause  of  the  low  condition  of  learning,  so 
lamentably  prevalent  at  that  period.  The  mass  of  the  po- 
pulation was  in  just  such  a  condition  as  not  to  be  sensible  of 
the  importance  of  knowledge,  and  they  required  powerful 


*  Smith,  p.  397.  f  Ibid.  p.  .324. 


-21 

artificial  aids  not  merely  to  furnish  the  means  of  education, 
but  to  inspire  the  tnste  for  it.  Immediately  after  the  revolu- 
tion, a  new  state  of  things  began  to  appear.  And  one  of 
the  earliest  subjects  which  attracted  the  attention  of  the  re- 
publican government  cf  our  state  was  that  of  education. 
Deeply  impressed  with  the  importance  of  it  to  the  general 
honour  and  prosperity,  it  appears  to  have  been  the  object 
and  determination  not  to  legislate  partially  or  imperfectly  in 
relation  to  it ;  but  to  lay  the  foundations  of  a  general  sys- 
tem, the  influence  and  effects  of  which  might  be  extended  to 
every  portion  of  the  state.  The  conception  certainly  was  a 
great  one,  and  altogther  worthy  of  the  wise  and  patriotic 
men  with  whom  it  originated.  To  carry  this  great  project 
into  effect,  a  general  university  for  the  state  was  created,  un- 
der the  title  of  "  the  University  of  the  State  of  New  York," 
the  whole  authority  of  which  was  vested  in  a  Board  of  Re- 
gents, appointed  immediately  by  the  Legislature,  and  of  which 
the  Governor,  Lieutenant  Governor,  and  the  officers  of 
state  were  members  ex  officio.  The  powers  granted  to  the 
Board  of  Regents  over  learning  and  education,  were  ample 
and  supreme.  They  were  invested  with  authority  to  estab- 
lish colleges  and  schools  in  every  part  of  the  state,  to  visit 
and  inspect  them  annually  when  so  established,  and  they 
were  required  to  make  an  annual  report  of  their  condition  to 
the  Legislature.  In  short,  they  were  charged  with  the  ge- 
neral superintendence  of  the  literature  of  the  state.  These 
were  extraordinary  powers  and  great  responsibilities.  That 
they  were  so  considered,  is  evident  from  the  character  of  the 
men  who  were  selected  to  discharge  this  trust.     They  were 


22 

the  conscript  fathers  of  the  state — illustrious  for  their  wis- 
dom, virtues,  and  patriotic  services.     It  is  gratifying  to  find 
that  this  character  the  board  of  regents  has  continued  to  sus- 
tain to  the  present  day,  embodying  in  it  a  large  proportion 
of  all  that  is  venerable  and  talented  in  our  state.     The  es- 
tablishment of  such  a  board  as  this,  and  invested  with  such 
powers,  was  unquestionably  one  of  the  most  admirable  mea- 
sures that  could  have  been  devised  for  the  general  and  per- 
manent advancement  of  learning.     Uninfluenced  by  sec- 
tional considerations,  they  were  enabled  to  view  the  state  as 
one  and  to  legislate  for  it  as  a  whole  ;  and  while  they  offered 
every  suitable  encouragement  to  the  multiplication  of  lite- 
rary institutions  in  different  parts  of  the  state,  keeping  pace 
in  this  respect  with  our  increasing  wants  and  growing  popu- 
lation, they  were  fully  sensible  that  competition  might  be 
carried  too  far,  and  terminate  in  the  total  destruction  of 
sound  learning.     With  an  honest  and  manly  hand,  therefore, 
they  checked  it  when  it  showed  a  tendency  to  become  ex- 
cessive.    A  detailed  account  of  what  they  have  done  for 
education  in  this  state,  literary  and  professional,  would  occu- 
py too  much  space  at  the  present  time ;  but  it  is  due  to  truth 
and  justice  to  say,  that  such  an  account  would  furnish  the 
most  triumphant  vindication  of  that  honoured  body,  and 
would  cover  with  confusion  some  of  those  who  are  so  loud 
in  their  denunciations  of  it. 

To  our  profession,  both  the  legislature  and  the  regents 
have  been  eminently  kind.  All  civilized  governments  have 
thought  it  proper  and  necessary  to  regulate  professional  edu- 
cation— to  establish  standards  of  professional  attainments — 


23 

and  to  exact  certain  requirements  from  those  who  offer  them- 
selves as  candidates  for  its  honours  and  emoluments.  This 
is  right  and  just.  It  is  founded  upon  the  principle,  that 
every  government  is  in  duty  bound  to  extend  its  protection 
as  far  as  it  can  over  the  lives  and  properties  of  its  citizens. 
Now  the  only  way  to  do  this  is  to  make  it  obligatory  upon 
every  one  who  enters  upon  any  of  the  learned  professions, 
to  pass  through  such  terms  of  study,  and  to  be  subjected  to 
such  examinations,  as  shall  give  the  public  some  pledge  as 
to  the  competency  of  the  persons  whom  they  may  be  obliged 
to  employ  in  a  professional  way.  It  is  only  among  savage 
nations,  and  in  rude  and  unformed  societies,  that  such 
regulations  do  not  exist ;  and  the  adoption  of  them  may  al- 
ways be  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  surest  indications  of 
progressing  improvement  in  any  community.  It  shows  the 
birth  of  liberal  sentiments  and  a  juster  appreciation  of  the 
value  of  professional  knowledge.  Without  the  existence  of 
such  regulations,  it  is  impossible  for  a  profession  to  become 
truly  respectable.  Knowledge  not  being  an  essential  requi- 
site, other  passports  to  public  favour  are  resorted  to.  As- 
surance then  usurps  the  place  of  talent — gravity,  of  wisdom — 
boasting,  of  knowledge — cunning,  of  skill — and  the  whole 
practice  becomes  a  mere  play  of  knavery  upon  the  weak- 
ness and  credulity  of  mankind.  You  see  this  illustrated  in 
every  community  where  laws  do  not  exist  to  regulate  the 
profession.  And  this  country  forms  no  exception.  Before 
tli<:  revolution,  when  no  restraints  existed,  see  what  a  picture 
i  /iven  of  our  profession  by  competent  judges.  Douglass^ 
who  w;is  liim-f  If  n  physician,  and  wrote  an  account  of  the 


24 

North  American  Colonies,  which  was  published  about  1753, 
gives  the  following  description  in  his  work  of  the  practice 
in  this  country.     "  In  general,  the  physical  practice  in  our 
Colonies,  is  so  perniciously  bad,  that,  excepting  in  surgery, 
and  some  very  acute  cases,  it  is  better  to  let  nature,  under 
a  proper  regimen,  take  her  course,  than  to  trust  to  the  ho- 
nesty and  sagacity  of  the  practitioner  :  our  American  prac- 
titioners   are    so   rash   and   officious,    the    saying   in   the 
Apocrypha,  (38.  15.)  may  with  much  propriety  be  applied 
to  them.     '  He  that  sinneth  before^  his  maker,  let  him  fall 
into  the  hands  of  the  physician.''     Frequently  there  is  more 
danger  from  the  physician  than  from  the  distemper.     Our 
practitioners  deal  much  in  quackery  and  quackish  medicines, 
as    requiring   no   labour  of  thought  or  composition,  and 
highly  recommended  in  the  London  quack-bills,  (in  which  all 
the    reading    of  many  of  our    practitioners    consists,)  in- 
advertently encouraged  by  patents  for  the  benefit  of  cer- 
tain fees  to  some  offices,  but  to  the  very  great  damage  of 
the  subject."     "In  the  most  trifling  cases,  they  use  a  rou- 
tine of  practice.     When  I  first  arrived  in  New  England, 
I  asked  a  noted  facetious  practitioner,  what  was  their  gene- 
ral method  of  practice  :  he  told  me  their  practice  was  very 
uniform ;  bleeding,  vomiting,  blistering,  purging,  anodyne, 
&tc. ;    if    the  illness  continued,   there  was  repetendi,  and 
finally,  murderandi ;  nature  was  never  to  be  consulted  or 
allowed  to  have  any  concern  in  the  affair.     What  Sydenham 
well  observes,  is  the  case  with  our  practitioners :  iEger  ni- 
mia  medici  diligentia  ad  plures  migret."* 

*  A  Summary,  Historical  and  Political,  of  the  first  planting,  pro- 


25 

Smith,  in  his  history  of  this  state  before  the  revolution, 
gives  a  picture,  not  more  flattering,  of  the  profession,  and 
boldly  assigns  the  cause.  "  Few  physicians  amongst  us  are 
eminent  for  their  skill.  Quacks  abound  like  locusts  in 
Egypt,  and  too  many  have  recommended  themselves  to  a 
full  practice  and  profitable  subsistence.  This  is  the  less  to  be 
wondered  at  as  the  profession  is  under  no  kind  of  regula- 
tion. Loud  as  the  call  is,  to  our  shame  be  it  remembered, 
we  have  no  law  to  protect  the  lives  of  the  king's  subjects* 
from  the  malpractice  of  pretenders.  Any  man,  at  his  plea- 
sure, sets  up  for  physician,  apothecary,  and  chirurgeon.  No 
candidates  are  either  examined,  or'licensed,  or  even  sworn 
to  fair  practice."* 

It  was  impossible  that  a  state  of  things  so  disreputable  to 
the  profession  and  injurious  to  the  public,  could  long  conti- 
nue. The  evil  was  too  great,  and  came  too  closely  home  to 
the  person  of  every  citizen,  to  be  long  unheeded.  It  ac- 
cordingly no  sooner  attracted  the  consideration  of  the  legis- 
lature, than  efficient  measures  were  adopted  to  wipe  off  so 
foul  a  stain  from  our  honour.  These  consisted  of  laws,  re- 
gulating the  qualifications  required  of  those  who  entered 
the  profession,  and  the  establishment  of  medical  societies  in 
every  county  of  the  state,  specially  charged  with  the  en- 

gressive  improvements,  and  present  state,  of  the  British  Settlements 
in  North  America.  By  William  Douglass,  M.  D.  Boston. 
Vol.  2.  p.  882. 

*  History  of  New  York,  from  the  first  discovery  to  the  year  1732. 
By  William  Smith,  A.  M.  with  a  continuation.  Albany,  1814, 
p.  320,  0. 

4 


26 

forcement  of  these  laws.     An  organised  system,  embracing 
within  the  sphere  of  its  operation  every  portion  of  the  state, 
was  thus  founded  by-law,  which  already  has  been  most  sa- 
lutary in  its  influence,  and  which  is  destined  hereafter  to 
confer  still  greater  blessings,  both  upon  the  profession  and 
the  public.     Since  their  first  enactment,  these  laws  have  been 
variously  modified ;  and  as  at  present  ratified,  they  require 
of  every  candidate  for  admission  into  the  profession,  that  he 
should  have  attained  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  and  stu- 
died medicine  four  years.*     They  also  enact,  "  that  no  per- 
son shall  practice  physic  or  surgery,  unless  he  shall  have  re- 
ceived a  license  or  diploma  for  that  purpose,  from  one  of  the 
incorporated  medical  societies  in  this  state,  or  the  degree  of 
doctor  of  medicine  from  the  regents  of  the  university." 

From  these  enactments  it  appears,  that  the  only  legiti- 
mate titles  to  practice  in  this  state  are  the  licences  of  the  me- 
dical societies,  and  the  degrees  of  the  university,  of  which 
this  college  is  a  branch. 

Such  are  some  of  the  laws  at  present  regulating  the  ad- 
mission of  persons  into  our  profession.  It  is  useless  to  ob- 
ject that  these  regulations  are  too  severe.  The  legislature, 
being  the  supreme  authority,  has  seen  fit  to  enact  them,  and 
whether  severe  or  not,  they  constitute  a  part  of  the  existing  law 
of  the  state,  and  as  such,  must  be  enforced.     But  in  reality 


*  To  obtain  the  Degree  of  Doctor  of  Medicine,  it  is  required  that 
the  candidates  should  have  attained  the  age  of  twenty-one  years- 
have  studied  medicine  three  years — and  have  attended  two  full 
courses  of  lectures. 


27 

there  is  no  severity  at  all  in  them.  All  laws  are  founded  on 
the  principle  of  restriction,  and  from  their  very  nature  must 
necessarily  be  so.  There  must,  therefore,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  be  some  abridgment  of  individual  rights,  wherever 
men  exist,  under  the  forms  and  operations  of  law.  The 
very  object  of  laws  is  to  prevent  individuals,  or  any  number 
of  individuals,  who  may  conspire  together,  from  doing  as 
they  please.  Now,  in  the  medical  code  of  this  state,  there  is 
nothing  more  than  this  necessary  restriction,  which  runs 
through  all  other  laws,  and  the  very  design  of  it  was  to  re- 
medy that  most  debased  of  all  conditions  into  which  a  pro- 
fession can  be  sunk,  of  suffering  every  one  to  do  just  as  he 
pleases.  If  the  law,  therefore,  be  severe  at  all,  it  can  only 
be  so  to  those  who  prefer  confusion  to  order, — anarchy  to 
good  government — and  who  choose  voluntarily  to  expose 
themselves  to  its  penalties,  and  such  persons,  of  course,  have 
no  reason  to  complain.  Its  provisions  are  eminently  calcu- 
lated to  elevate  the  character  of  the  profession  ;  and  as  such, 
thev  have  been  sanctioned  by  the  voice  of  the  profession 
throughout  the  state.  But  I  will  not  dwell  upon  this  sub- 
ject, and  I  have  merely  entered  upon  these  details  for  the 
purpose  of  showing  how  deeply  indebted  our  profession  is 
to  the  legislature  for  the  paternal  care  which  she  has  ex- 
tended to  it.  But  her  watchful  guardianship  has  not  ended 
here.  She  has  not  merely  passed  laws  to  regulate  the  prac- 
tice of  the  profession,  but  she  has  also,  with  a  munificent 
liberality,  supplied  the  amplest  means  of  medical  instruc- 
tion. Governed  by  a  just  and  enlightened  policy,  she  has 
viewed  the  state  as  a  whole,  every  part  of  which  is  entitled 


28 

to  her  care  and  patronage.  She  has  accordingly  established 
two  medical  colleges,  as  branches  of  the  university — one  in 
this  city,  and  the  other  in  a  distant  part  of  the  state* — thus 
affording  the  advantages  and  conveniences  both  of  a  city 
and  a  country  institution. 

The  college  in  this  city  was  established  twenty-three  years 
ago  by  the  regents  of  the  university,  in  consequence  of 
powers  delegated  to  them  by  a  special  act  of  the  legislature, 
so  far  back  as  the  year  1791,  Since  then,  her  fortunes 
have  been  various.  She  has,  however,  survived  not  merely, 
but  gloriously  triumphed  over  foreign  aggression  and  inter- 
nal convulsions,  and  she  now  reposes  on  a  basis  more  solid 
than  she  has  done  at  any  period  since  her  first  establish- 
ment. Compared  with  most  of  the  medical  institutions  of 
our  country,  she  is  no  less  venerable  for  her  duration,  than 
distinguished  for  the  number  and  respectability  of  the  sons 
whom  she  has  educated.  Upwards  of  five  hundred  of  her 
graduates  are  found  scattered  over  our  wide  spread  country, 
many  of  whom  have  already  rendered  themselves  illustrious 
by  their  achievements  in  science.  To  the  pupil,  pursuing 
his  career  of  study,  it  is  a  matter  of  honourable  boast,  that 
he  is  associating  himself  with  all  the  hereditary  honours  of 


*  The  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  the  Western  Dis- 
trict. The  success  of  this  College  speaks  loudly  in  favour  of  the 
wisdom  of  the  general  policy  observed  by  the*  legislature  and  the 
board  of  regents,  in  relation  to  medical  institutions  in  this  state,  at 
the  same  time  that  it  exhibits  one  among  a  number  of  proofs  of  the 
learning,  ability,  and  zeal,  of  its  distinguished  professors. 


29 

such  an  institution.  It  acts  as  a  stimulus  to  his  exertions, 
urging  him  on  to  emulate  the  bright  examples  thus  set  be- 
fore him. 

But  not  merely  in  this  respect  does  this  college  challenge 
an  advantage.  By  the  constituted  authorities  of  our  state, 
she  has  always  been  viewed  with  special  regard,  and  the  ho- 
nours conferred  upon  her  graduates  are  of  a  peculiar  value. 
Her  diplomas  emanating  from  the  regents  of  the  university, 
are  strictly  university  honours,  and  not  mere  college  ones. 
And  in  receiving  them,  the  name  of  every  candidate 
is  made  known  to  a  body  of  illustrious  men,  identified  with 
the  literary  and  political  history  of  our  country. 

All  this,  however,  would  be  of  little  avail,  were  not  the 
honours  and  privileges  emanating  from  her,  of  an  enduring 
character.  History,  not  very  remote,  furnishes  us  with  the 
melancholy  instances  of  colleges,  struggling  through  a  fe- 
verish existence  of  a  few  years,  which,  either  from  some  de- 
fect in  their  corporate  powers,  or  some  other  equally  fatal 
cause,  have  been  blotted  from  existence,  leaving  not  a  sin- 
gle memorial  behind  them.  To  the  reflections  of  its  alumni, 
such  a  fate  cannot  be  otherwise  than  distressing.  Every 
man  of  honourable  feelings  is  deeply  attached  to  the  alma 
mater  where  he  received  his  education.  There  he  first  be- 
came conscious  of  the  extent  and  power  of  his  capacities. 
There  his  mind  was  formed  to  habits  of  thought  and  study. 
There  he  received  the  first  impulses  to  high  and  noble 
achievement.  There  he  formed  associations  which  have 
swayed  the  whole  destiny  of  his  after  life.  Loaded  with 
honours,  he  leaves  her  with  regret.     But  he  can  never  forget 


30 

her.  Amid  the  busy  scenes  of  life,  his  purest  thoughts  are 
directed  towards  her ;  and  in  the  wane  of  manhood,  as  years 
steal  over  him,  he  enjoys  a  melancholy  pleasure  in  gathering 
up  the  early  recollections  of  his  collegiate  career.  How 
embittered  must  all  these  recollections  be,  should  some  un- 
toward fortune  have  prostrated  in  the  dust,  the  institution 
with  which  they  are  associated.  When  the  Romans  de- 
nounced their  heaviest  imprecation  upon  the  person  who 
should  destroy  the  monument  of  his  ancestors,  they  merely 
wished  that  he  might  outlive  all  his  relatives  and  friends,  sup- 
posing this  to  be  the  greatest  curse  that  could  befal  him. 
Quisquis  hoc  sustulerit  aut  jusserit,  ultimus  moriatur. 
Something  like  this  must  be  the  situation  of  one  who  finds 
himself  outliving  the  institution  from  which  he  received  all 
his  literary  or  professional  honours.  Such  a  fate  can  never 
befall  the  graduate  of  this  college.  She  has  already  stood 
the  test  of  time.  Safe  in  her  rights,  every  year  but 
adds  to  her  security  and  multiplies  her  triumphs.  And 
in  the  successive  classes  which  are  annually  resorting  hither, 
distinguished  for  their  talents,  industry,  and  enthusiasm,  I 
witness  the  evidence  and  the  pledge  of  her  present  safety 
and  her  future  prosperit}'. 


COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  due  on  the  date  indicated  below,  or  at  the 
expiration  of  a  definite  period  after  the  date  of  borrowing, 
as  provided  by  the  rules  of  the  Library  or  by  special  ar- 
rangement with  the  Librarian  in  charge. 

DATE  BORROWED 

DATE  DUE 

DATE  BORROWED 

DATE  DUE 

C2S(238)M100 

B38 
1829 


